Online advertisements, such as sponsored search results, are important revenue generators for online service providers. For example, users of search engine services enter search queries. Sponsored search results can appear more prominently in a SERP (search engine results page) than when not sponsored. The search result can have a higher ranking, appear more conspicuously, and the like. In other words, a marketer can pay for increasing the likelihood that users will click on their search results.
A uniquely identifiable object can be distinguished from all other objects, even those with substantially similar manufacturing specifications. While a UPC (universal product code) specifies a species of product, a uniquely identifiable object is distinguishable even within the product species.
One problem with sponsored search results for uniquely identifiable objects is that marketers have never been offered a mechanism to effectively advertise sponsored uniquely identifiable objects in search results. As a result, sponsored SERPs on major search engines are limited to general items, for example, at a keyword level of specificity. Sometimes a general search engines passes search query values to a vertical search engine of an online service provider for a specified niche search. However, the general search engine forgoes the opportunity for advertising revenue for that sponsored search result.
Additionally, vertical search engines that index niche objects for an online service provider are typically limited in the ability to effectively advertise sponsored uniquely identifiable objects in search results. The online service provider can generate revenue for non-sponsored listings, but misses opportunities for monetizing sponsored search results. Moreover, the locally hosted listings may not generate revenue at all (e.g., free listings).
What is needed is a technique for third-party display of sponsored search results for uniquely identifiable objects.